Vehicle sliding door

Abstract

To achieve both weight saving and securing of rigidity in a slide door for a vehicle.SOLUTION: A slide door 1 for a vehicle has: a resin-made outer panel 21; a resin-made inner panel 22 which is disposed on a vehicle interior side of the outer panel 21; and a reinforcement 4 which is fixed to a vehicle exterior side of the inner panel 22 in a position close to an outside steering wheel 3 provided on the outer panel 21. An abutting rib 21a protruding to the vehicle interior side and abutting on the reinforcement 4 is integrally formed on an inner face of the outer panel 21.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a sliding door for a vehicle. [Background technology]

[0002] There are known vehicle doors in which the outer panel and inner panel that make up the door body are both made of resin (see, for example, Patent Documents 1 and 2). While such resin vehicle doors aim to further reduce the vehicle body weight, ensuring rigidity is an important issue. To address this issue of rigidity, it is common to employ a reinforcing structure using a steel plate reinforcement (reinforcing member) in the inner panel, regardless of whether the vehicle door is made of resin or not (see, for example, Patent Document 3). [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2019-123394 [Patent Document 2] Japanese Patent Publication No. 2020-142638 [Patent Document 3] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2009-143294 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] Resin sliding doors are often used as rear seat doors, and in those cases, they are slidably supported on the vehicle body at three points: the upper and lower ends on the front side of the vehicle, and the center on the rear side of the vehicle. Since the rigidity of a resin sliding door decreases near the center on the front side of the vehicle, which is the farthest from these support points, it is conceivable to ensure rigidity by employing the above-mentioned reinforcing structure in this vicinity.

[0005] However, because an outside handle is provided on the outer panel near the center of the front side of the sliding door, the outer panel is prone to deformation due to the load applied in the vehicle width direction when the handle is operated. Therefore, if we try to suppress deformation of the outer panel using only the above-mentioned reinforcing structure, we will have to increase the size of the reinforcement attached to the inner panel, which will be a major obstacle to weight reduction.

[0006] SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a vehicle sliding door that is lightweight and has sufficient rigidity. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] In order to achieve the above-mentioned object, the vehicle sliding door of the present invention has a resin outer panel, a resin inner panel arranged on the inside of the outer panel, and a reinforcement fixed to the outside of the inner panel in a position close to an outside handle provided on the outer panel, and a contact rib that protrudes toward the inside of the vehicle and abuts against the reinforcement is integrally formed on the inner surface of the outer panel. [Effects of the Invention]

[0008] As described above, according to the present invention, it is possible to achieve both weight reduction and ensuring rigidity in a vehicle sliding door. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0009] [Figure 1] 1 is a side view of a vehicle sliding door according to an embodiment of the present invention, viewed from the vehicle exterior side. [Figure 2] 2 is a cross-sectional view taken along line AA and line BB in FIG. 1. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0010] Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

[0011] Fig. 1 is a side view of a vehicle sliding door according to one embodiment of the present invention as seen from outside the vehicle, Fig. 2(a) is a cross-sectional view taken along line AA in Fig. 1, and Fig. 2(b) is a cross-sectional view taken along line BB in Fig. 1.

[0012] The vehicle sliding door (hereinafter simply referred to as "sliding door") 1 of this embodiment opens and closes the door opening of the right rear seat of the vehicle by sliding it in the fore-and-aft direction of the vehicle, and has a door body 2 and a resin door trim (not shown) which is an interior material provided on the inside of the door body 2.

[0013] The door body 2 has an outer panel 21 and an inner panel 22 arranged on the vehicle interior side of the outer panel 21. The outer panel 21 is made of resin, preferably a polypropylene compound, a sheet molding compound (SMC) sheet in which unsaturated polyester resin is impregnated into glass fiber or carbon fiber, or polycarbonate, and more preferably a polypropylene compound. The inner panel 22 is also made of resin, preferably an SMC or a composite material (polypropylene compound) of glass fiber or carbon fiber and polypropylene resin. The door body 2 is constructed by joining the peripheral edges of the outer panel 21 and the inner panel 22 together with an adhesive 23. The door trim is detachably attached to the door body 2 by, for example, a resin clip so as to cover the vehicle interior side of the inner panel 22.

[0014] Furthermore, guide roller units (not shown) are provided in the front upper region (upper region on the front side of the vehicle) R1, the front lower region (lower region on the front side of the vehicle) R2, and the rear central region (central region on the rear side of the vehicle in the vertical direction of the vehicle) R3 of the inner panel 22. The guide roller units are slidably connected to guide rails provided at the top, bottom, and rear central region (central region on the rear side of the vehicle in the vertical direction of the vehicle) of the door opening of the vehicle body (not shown). As a result, the sliding door 1 is slidably supported on the vehicle body at a total of three support points, one each in the front upper region R1, the front lower region R2, and the rear central region R3.

[0015] As described above, since the sliding door 1 of this embodiment has a door body 2 made of resin, the vehicle body can be further lightened. However, there is a concern that the rigidity of the door body 2 may be reduced in a specific region. That is, the rigidity of the door body 2 is sufficiently ensured in the region surrounded by the dashed lines in FIG. 1 , which is centered on three support points (regions R1 to R3) with respect to the vehicle body. However, the rigidity is reduced in the region farthest from these support points, i.e., the front central region S (the central region in the vehicle vertical direction on the front side of the vehicle) hatched in FIG. 1 . Furthermore, this front central region S is the region where the outside handle 3 is provided on the outer panel 21. Therefore, in the front central region S, a load is applied to the outer panel 21 in the vehicle width direction every time the outside handle 3 is operated, which may cause deformation of the outer panel 21.

[0016] Therefore, in this embodiment, a configuration for suppressing such deformation of the outer panel 21 is provided in the front central region S of the door body 2. Specifically, a reinforcement 5 made of steel plate (metal) is provided as a reinforcing member on the outer side of the inner panel 22. The reinforcement 5 is arranged in the vertical direction of the vehicle in a position close to the outside handle 3, and is fixed to the inner panel 22 with rivets 24 and adhesive 25. In addition, a contact rib 21a that protrudes toward the inner side of the vehicle and abuts against the reinforcement 5 is formed integrally on the inner surface of the outer panel 21. The contact rib 21a has the function of transmitting a load input to the outer panel 21 to the reinforcement 4.

[0017] Therefore, even if a load (stress) is applied to the outer panel 21 toward the inside of the vehicle when the outside handle 3 is operated, such load can be transmitted from the contact rib 21a to the inner panel 22 through the reinforcement 4. As a result, the rigidity around the outside handle 3 can be improved, and deformation of the outer panel 21 caused by operation of the outside handle 3 can be suppressed. Furthermore, since the reinforcement 4 as a reinforcing member is not required to have strength or rigidity sufficient to suppress deformation of the outer panel 21 by itself, there is no need to make the size of the reinforcement 4 very large, which does not hinder weight reduction.

[0018] It is preferable that the load input to the outer panel 21 be dispersed over a wide area and transmitted to the reinforcement 4, thereby effectively improving the rigidity around the outside handle 3. For this reason, it is preferable that the abutment rib 21a abuts against the reinforcement 4 over as wide an area as possible. That is, as shown in the figure, it is preferable that the abutment rib 21a is formed on the inner surface of the outer panel 21 along the vehicle longitudinal direction, and abuts against the vehicle-exterior surface of the reinforcement 4 over the entire vehicle longitudinal direction. For the same reason, it is preferable that a plurality of abutment ribs 21a are provided in the vehicle vertical direction, and specifically, it is preferable that the abutment ribs 21a are provided on both sides of the outside handle 3 in the vehicle vertical direction.

[0019] However, since the abutment rib 21a is formed integrally with the resin outer panel 21, it can cause sink marks on the outer surface of the outer panel 21, which can deteriorate the appearance. Therefore, the abutment rib 21a is preferably formed in a position where such sink marks are not noticeable, such as the periphery of a recess 21b formed in the outer panel 21. That is, the outer panel 21 is formed with a recess 21b that is recessed from the exterior side to the interior side of the vehicle, thereby forming a pocket portion (space) P between the outer panel 21 and the outside handle 3 for inserting the user's hand. The abutment rib 21a is preferably formed along the periphery of the recess 21b. In particular, from the viewpoint of the rigidity described above, the abutment rib 21a is preferably formed along the upper and lower portions of the periphery of the recess 21b that sandwich the outside handle 3, as shown in the figure.

[0020] The reinforcement 4 may be fixed only with rivets 24, but is preferably also joined to the inner panel 22 with adhesive 25. This makes it easier for the load input to the reinforcement 5 from the outer panel 21 through the abutment rib 21a to be transmitted to the inner panel 22, and more reliably suppresses deformation of the outer panel 21 caused by operation of the outside handle 3. However, when the reinforcement 4 and the inner panel 22 are joined using adhesive 25, an additional step is required, which may increase the number of steps and lead to increased costs. However, in this embodiment, the provision of the abutment rib 21a on the outer panel 21 prevents this risk.

[0021] That is, the contact rib 21a comes into contact with the reinforcement 4 when joining the outer panel 21 and the inner panel 22, and therefore also functions as a jig for pressing the reinforcement 4 against the inner panel 22 to join them. Therefore, the reinforcement 4 and the inner panel 22 can be joined at the same time as joining the outer panel 21 and the inner panel 22, without the need for an additional process. Therefore, from this perspective as well, it is preferable that the contact rib 21a is configured to come into contact with the reinforcement 4 over as wide an area as possible, which makes it possible to reliably join the reinforcement 4 and the inner panel 21.

[0022] The contact rib 21a may simply contact the reinforcement 4, but may also be adhered to the reinforcement 4 with an adhesive or the like to ensure rigidity against loads acting on the outer panel 21 toward the outside of the vehicle. [Explanation of symbols]

[0023] 1. Vehicle sliding door 2 Door body 3 Outside handle 4 Reinforce 21 outer panel 21a Contact rib 22b Recess 22 Inner panel 23,25 Adhesive 24 rivets P pocket R1 Front upper area (upper area at the front of the vehicle) R2 Front lower area (lower area at the front of the vehicle) R3 Rear central area (the central area in the vertical direction of the rear of the vehicle) S Front central area (the central area in the vertical direction of the front of the vehicle)

Claims

1. Resin outer panel and a resin inner panel disposed on the vehicle interior side of the outer panel; a reinforcement fixed to the outer side of the inner panel at a position close to an outside handle provided on the outer panel, The vehicle sliding door has an inner surface of the outer panel integrally formed with a contact rib that protrudes toward the interior of the vehicle and contacts the reinforcement.

2. 2. The vehicle sliding door according to claim 1, wherein the reinforcement is arranged on the outer side of the inner panel along the vehicle vertical direction, and the abutment rib is formed on the inner surface of the outer panel along the vehicle longitudinal direction and abuts against the outer side surface of the reinforcement along the vehicle longitudinal direction.

3. 3. The vehicle sliding door according to claim 2, wherein the abutment ribs are provided on both sides of the outside handle in the vertical direction of the vehicle.

4. The vehicle sliding door according to claim 1 , wherein the reinforcement is fixed to the inner panel by at least an adhesive.

5. The vehicle sliding door according to claim 1 , wherein the contact rib is joined to the reinforcement member in contact with the reinforcement member.

6. 4. The vehicle sliding door according to claim 1, wherein a recess is formed in the outer panel extending from the vehicle exterior side to the vehicle interior side so as to form a space between the outer panel and the outside handle, and the abutment rib is formed along a peripheral portion of the recess.

7. 4. The vehicle sliding door according to claim 1, wherein the sliding door is slidably supported relative to the vehicle body at an upper portion on a front side of the vehicle, a lower portion on a front side of the vehicle, and a central portion on a rear side of the vehicle in the vertical direction of the vehicle.

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